U.S. Representative Massie Introduces Industrial Hemp Bill

Today, Congressman Thomas Massie (R-KY) introduced federal legislation that requires the federal government to respect state laws allowing the growing of industrial hemp. H.R. 525, the Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2013, amends the Controlled Substances Act to exclude industrial hemp from the definition of marijuana. Rep. John Yarmuth (D-KY) is a co-sponsor of the bill in the U.S. House. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) and Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (KY) are supporting a similar bill in the U.S. Senate.

“Industrial hemp is a sustainable crop and could be a great economic opportunity for Kentucky farmers,” said Rep. Massie. “My wife and I are raising our children on the tobacco and cattle farm where my wife grew up. Tobacco is no longer a viable crop for many of us in Kentucky and we understand how hard it is for a family farm to turn a profit. Industrial hemp will give small farmers another opportunity to succeed.”

Massie, a Republican, is the third member of the House of Representatives to introduce legislation this week to address the gross misapplication of federal law. Two Democrats introduced legislation to remove cannabis from the controlled substances act and to provide a framework for taxation on recreational cannabis production. Those two bills were introduced by Democrats, including Jared Polis, who noted in an interview with a reporter at TruthOut,

"Congress is a lagging indicator for public opinion; public opinion is leading, public opinion is there on this issue that it should be left up to states and local governments how to deal with marijuana," Polis said. "It's just a question of Congress catching up, and I think it's a question of when, not if."

I think 40 years is enough time for Congress to buy a clue, personally.

Polis also acknowledges something I have noted here repeatedly, which is the fact that Congress is not really part of the cutting edge of anything. Those who are are quickly excoriated by the press and their fellow politicians. I totally understand why Al Gore, for instance, would not want to be in govt. when climate change is such an important issue for him.

I assume this is so that more Republicans will support the bill - however, it is an important step to note how ridiculous such a claim is - that hemp, which has no psychotropic qualities, is more dangerous than meth and cocaine.

anyone in Congress who doesn't support this bill is too stupid to breathe.

5. hemp could really help put fewer pesticides in the soil

Four years ago, Michelle Obama picked up a shovel to make a powerful symbolic statement about America’s food and farm future: She turned a patch of White House lawn into a working organic garden.

I’m guessing that now, as she begins another four years in the people’s mansion, the First Lady is asking herself: “What’s next? What can I do this time around to plant a crop of common sense in our country’s political soil that will link America’s farmers, consumers, environment, and grassroots economy into one big harvest of common good?”

If she’s asking this question, I’m happy to offer a one-word answer: Hemp. How about planting a good healthy stand of industrial hemp next to your organic garden?

...Our nation is the world’s biggest consumer of hemp products (from rope to shampoo, building materials to food), yet the mad masters of our insane and protracted Drug War have lumped hemp and marijuana together as “Schedule 1 controlled substances.” Our Land of the Free is the world’s only industrialized country that bans farmers from growing this benign, profitable, job-creating, and environmentally beneficial plant.

7. KY is already one of ten states with legal hemp legislation

They want to be able to allow farmers to grow this cash crop for which this nation is the greatest user - we have to buy imported hemp, which is stupid.

But anytime any Republican wants to pretend they are for less govt intrusion and greater fairness - they just need to be reminded that they created this mess and they have tried to use it against political opponents - until farmers finally said - stop this crazy shit.

Bobby really has nothing to say about not being the party of stupid when he wants to give money to churches to teach creationism. He's as much of a coward when it comes to talking about who is making this nation stupid as anyone else in power

In 1998, Consolidated Growers and Processors (CGP), PHYTOTECH, and the Ukraine's Institute of Bast Crops began what may be one of the most important projects in history - the planting of industrial hemp for the removal of contaminants in the soil near Chernobyl.

CGP is an ecologically-minded multinational corporation which finances the growing and processing of sustainable industrial crops such as flax, kenaf, and industrial hemp. CGP operates in North America, Europe and the Ukraine.

PHYTOTECH (see webpage: www.phytotech.com/index.html ) specializes in phytoremediation, the general term for using phyto (plants) to remediate (clean up) polluted sites. Phytoremediation can be used to remove radioactive elements from soil and water at former weapons producing facilities. It can also be used to clean up metals, pesticides, solvents, explosives, crude oil, polyaromatic hydrocarbons, and toxins leaching from landfills.

"Hemp is proving to be one of the best phyto-remediative plants we have been able to find," said Slavik Dushenkov, a research scienst with PHYTOTECH. Test results have been promising and CGP, PHYOTECH and the Bast Institute plan full scale trials in the Chernobyl region in the spring of 1999.

The recent clean-up efforts in Japan limited phytoremediation to sunflowers and reported they did not have as much success as they had hoped. Hemp isn't illegal in Japan, so I don't know why they don't use it since it has already been shown to be somewhat effective - although I would imagine years crops would be required.

Hemp shares with the sunflower a strong hollow core - the stalk core of hemp is of a different cellular structure than that of recreational cannabis, btw.